Sports Stars using Twitter for a Greater Cause: Twitchange 2.0

In today's world, social media and networking sites are beginning to serve a prominent role in society.

Almost all of us use these sites to keep in touch with friends, old or new, or family that may only be available at the click of a mouse. You may log on to it once or twice per day without really considering it useful or you may be hooked and unable to go ten minutes without changing your status.

Some people use social networking, or twitter in particular, for a different reason.

Troy Polamalu is leading the second ever Twitchange charity auction through his twitter account. Polamalu is fronting a charity auction called Twitchange 2.0 that is based on the social networking site.

The premise of this auction is simple. Fans will bid on their favorite celebrities in order to be linked to that person's twitter account. That athlete will follow the winner of said auction and tweet to that person.

All proceeds of the auctions will go to Operation Once in a Lifetime. Troy Polamalu has been part of this charity for several years and has put in his own time and resources to keep it going. Details on the charity can be found at (www.operationonceinalifetime.com/).

The most startling thing about this Twitchange auction is how rapidly it has spread across the sporting world.

The original Twitchange auction, in September, was fronted by Eva Longoria and featured predominantly entertainment stars such as Justin Bieber and Kim Kardashian. It was a huge success that raised nearly half a million dollars to build a home for disabled children in Haiti.

This innovative idea is likely to excel to a greater degree now as such stars as Shaquille O'Neal(3.4million followers) and Chad Ochocinco (1.6million followers) lead the surge with the most followers. The sporting world has made this a worldwide event even attracting the attention of soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo who tips the twitter scales at 1.5million followers.

In a time when the internet is mainly used by athletes for self promotion or in Greg Oden and Darnell Dockett's case self exposure, it is refreshing to see so many athletes holding up their hands and coming together for a good cause.

The Twitchange auction will take place on 29th of January and anyone can become involved. More information on Twitchange can be found at www.twitchange.com.